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Daroskelar Starport
Daroskelar Starport was a starport on the Orion Colony world of Daros IV. Description The starport was a vast concrete plain, pentagonal in shape and around 480 meters to a side. Landing areas were marked by brightly painted concentric circles protected by sloping blast shields, and plenty of open space for more ships to land and cargo lighters to load or unload cargo. As some of Daros IV’s client worlds were fairly undeveloped and still used chemical combustion engines for landing and take-off, some of the landing areas were badly scorched and pitted. The whole landing field could get very hot during the heat of Daros's day. Depending on where a ship was berthed, the Starport Control Center could be up to 2 kilometres away, though more welcome visitors were granted a groundcar ride which saved both time and walking. It was a one-story concrete building, windowless with white-washed walls, and with tracking and communications equipment mounted on the roof and cargo lighters parked beside it. The single entrance was via an airlock, despite being on the planet's surface. Inside, the control center was much more welcoming, air-conditioned, carpeted and decorated by colorful Orion tapestries and the insignia of the Five Families. A single corridor ran the length of the building, providing access to the lobbies of each of the Families, with a keypad-secured elevator leading to the Traffic Control Center itself. :Though the text states that the control center is in the center of the landing field, the map shows it some distance outside, connected by a road. It could be that the landing field is much larger than that depicted. The starport was situated 40 kilometers west of the city of Daroskelar, on the opposite coast of the peninsula. Travel between the two was by aircar over a mountain range. The Bazaar sat on a plateau overlooking the starport; it was comprised of the High Market and the Shadow Market. Management Daros Traffic Control contacted incoming ships when they were approximately 50,000 kilometers away. It requested a ship’s identity, and then gave instructions to land at the starport. Final guidance to land was provided by a radio homing beacon. However, proof of identity was never required; everyone was welcome on Daros IV, provided they didn't cause too much trouble and had something to trade. The Five Families that ruled Daros IV jointly administered the Starport, by dividing it into five sections each. Ships landing in a particular Family's zone were not obligated to trade with that Family, but paid all berthing fees and repair charges to them. These fees were surprisingly exorbitant, with a landing fee of 500 credits and a berthing fee of 150 credits per days – 10 times and 3 times the equivalent cost on a Federation world, respectively. One could contact representatives of each Family in their offices at the control center. ( ) Employees * Keros Family ** Kelon Keros, chief trade representative * Kerav Family * Elkar Kerav, trade broker * Savro Kerav, port official Category:Facilities